


The Long Journey to Utopia

by ateezsnoona



Category: ATEEZ (Band)
Genre: ATEEZ (Band) Are Pirates, Adventure & Romance, Heartbreak, M/M, Pirates, Sea Monsters, Sirens
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-27
Updated: 2020-06-27
Packaged: 2021-03-03 21:28:10
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,381
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24942325
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ateezsnoona/pseuds/ateezsnoona
Summary: From a small port town San and Wooyoung long for adventure, two mysterious strangers come into their lives and give them just that... and more!
Relationships: Jeong Yunho/Kim Hongjoong, Jung Wooyoung/Park Seonghwa
Kudos: 13





	1. Before the Beginning

_Prologue_

He felt the sun creep up on his face and groaned loudly as he flipped over to his side trying to avoid the heat. _My muscles hurt… My back and arms are so sore… I really don’t want to get up. But it’s getting to the point where I can’t get comfortable anymore._

“San? Are you awake?”

San cracked his eyes open and he rolled over to his little brother’s annoyingly bright smile.

“Wooyoung… I always wonder how it’s possible for you to be so cheery in the morning,” San groaned.

Wooyoung grinned in a way that made San’s annoyed morning expression soften up just a little.

“It’s easy! I get excited about where our travels will take us. I’m glad we decided to go on this journey together. Plus, I’ve got a long day of peeling potatoes ahead of me. Last night’s stew was a hit among the crew and I need to get an early start if I want to relax later. I’m also sure there’ll be crew members looking for something to eat first thing. Not everyone likes to sleep in. If you wanted a few more hours of sleep, you should’ve slept in the cabin. Whose idea was it to sleep out here on the deck?” Wooyoung’s smirk continued to grow on his face the more he berated his brother.

“Listen… we spent most of the night talking about nothing and there were only a few hours left in the night anyways. Sleeping on those hard ass bunks isn’t comfortable anyways. We should try to convince our captain to invest in some hammocks for us next time we dock.” San replied with a smirk. He was more than used to Wooyoung being a smart ass.

Wooyoung's cheeks flushed at any mention of the captain and he did not disappoint today. San's smirk grew as Wooyoung pouted at him. Both of them stood and stretched before setting out to start their day. While Wooyoung went to the kitchen to start his prep, San found himself walking towards his superior’s quarters to receive assignments for the day.

***

_~Two Weeks Prior~_

Late at night dim candlelight lit two figures tucked away in the captain’s quarters of a ship.

“Seonghwa… We need to hire a cook before we set back out. I don’t mind filling in here and there but I’m not going to continue being solely responsible for our entire crew. With all the new hands we’ve recruited I’m not sure I can cook for all of them and maintain my duties as quartermaster to you and the crew.” Hongjoong tapped his foot as talked, letting out an air of frustration. His captain was prone to tune him out and he hoped this wasn’t one of those times.

“Did you hear me _captain_?” Hongjoong raised his eyebrow and glared at Seonghwa who had been reading the papers sprawled out on his desk.

“Stop worrying Hong, we’ll go scout the town together in the morning.” Seonghwa could only faintly see Hongjoong’s annoyed face in the candlelight, but could hear how irate he was in his voice. Seonghwa had been pondering in the back of his mind what to do about the role of cook, however, he found himself more preoccupied with the recent rumors circulating the pirate community. The documents spread along his desk contained his next adventure and Seonghwa was itching to go. He let out a sigh as his quartermaster’s words processed in his brain. Hongjoong was right… they needed to find a cook before heading out.

***

The next morning the pair found a port city lively with the bustle of people. Hongjoong and Seonghwa walked along the cobblestone roads next to the docks and piers collecting supplies and information from the various vendors. The sun had steadily climbed and started to fall in the sky as they milled about. Before they knew it… it was 3 in the afternoon.

“Seonghwa I think we’ve collected more than enough supplies; we should head back to the ship soon,” Hongjoong muttered under his breath, “At this rate we won’t find anyone to fill our cook role. The locals around here suck, not one of them want to speak to us. I don’t know if it’s because we’re outsiders or what…”

Seonghwa raised his eyebrows at his subordinate’s words.

“Weren’t you the one who was so set on finding ourselves a cook today? We’ve only been shopping around and casually asking the locals, I figured you would want to look a little harder, there’s plenty of…” Seonghwa trailed off as he turned towards a loud shriek coming from one of the docks.

He turned to look to see a man pulling another out of the water relentlessly laughing as he did so. The one being pulled out was obstinately cursing and continuing to scream. He glanced around in embarrassment and locked eyes with Seonghwa.

Blush spread all over the man’s face and with red ears he yelled out,

“HAVE WE MET? YOU SEEM COMFORTABLE STARING AT SOMEONE YOU HAVE NO BUSINESS WITH!”

Seonghwa cracked a smile and responded with a chuckle,

“So sorry for the discourtesy, but loud and handsome men _are just my type_.”

***

Wooyoung stared at the strange man and looked away in humiliation. What kind of person replies like that? What kind of timing was this? Why did someone happen to be by them right as something so embarrassing happened?

The shorter of the two strange men glanced at the one who spoke with annoyance.

“Ignore him please, do you boys need any help? If need be, I can find you a change of clothes. We don’t mind lending a kind hand, in return, I only ask if you boys are from around here?”

“Whatsits to you if we are?” San spoke up in his brother’s place. The fact that Wooyoung was put in this tough position was all his fault anyways. They had been roughhousing on the dock when San playfully pushed his brother towards the water. He thought Wooyoung would catch his balance as he usually did, but today was not his lucky day.

“My name is Hongjoong. Sorry maybe I should have introduced myself first. This is Captain Seonghwa and we’re looking for a cook to join us on our ship. Know of anyone who is available to join us at sea?” Hongjoong scowled, were all the locals rude and closed off as a norm?

Wooyoung looked up from where he had been staring at the ground. The two men were looking expectantly at him and San. The captain specifically staring at him again.

“I can cook.” Wooyoung replied shakily as the blush spread back across his cheeks.

San stole a look in his direction. Maybe the two strange men could give them the break they had been looking for. The brothers longed to leave their small port town and it seemed like a ticket had finally fallen into their laps.

“Can you? How convenient! We can discuss pay and duration back on our ship. That is if you’re offering to fill the job!” Captain Seonghwa beamed in.

“I am! But my brother here has to come with me. We both get paid the same fair wage and I’m in.” Wooyoung said as he placed his hands around San’s shoulders.

“Woo! I can’t cook like you… I might be able to get by with a labor related job but there’s no way they’ll pay us equally, don’t worry about me!” San interjected in a hushed tone towards his brother.

The captain raised his brows. The second man wasn’t as quiet as he had hoped to be.

“Both of you? We were only looking for one additional crew member. What do you think Hongjoong?” Captain Seonghwa asked playfully.

In any other situation Hongjoong may have refused the ridiculous offer, but he was ecstatic they had found someone willing to fill the role.

“I don’t think it’s that big of a deal, we’ll find a place for the other one.” Hongjoong said sternly.

“Nice, I’m glad we’re on the same page.” Captain Seonghwa turned to face the two boys, “Looks like your both hired.”

San and Wooyoung stood dumbfounded for about 30 seconds before coming to the realization that their long-awaited goal of heading out towards adventure was about to come true.

Wooyoung turned to face forward when suddenly Captain Seonghwa took a few steps toward him and closed the gap between the two pairs. The captain confidently grasped Wooyoung’s still dripping face before anyone had time to react. He tilted Wooyoung’s face side to side observing him with his own face only inches away. Wooyoung felt the color return to his cheeks. Captain Seonghwa pulled his head in close enough to whisper in Wooyoung’s ear.

“I know my subordinate told you to ignore me earlier, but I hope you know I do in fact find you very handsome, I’m very happy with how today is turning out.” The captain’s breath tickled his ear, only leading Wooyoung to flush even brighter.

The next thing anyone knew Hongjoong had grabbed his captain by the collar and dragged him away irritated.

“Follow me boys, I’m serious, ignore this idiot. He may be your captain from here on out, but don’t get it twisted, _I’m_ the one in charge behind the scenes.” He smirked, “Follow us if you’re ready to go on this journey together.”

***


	2. The Beginning

***

San wobbled slightly as he brought the hefty refilled supplies back onto the ship. It had been a few weeks since him and Wooyoung had been hired to work on the ship. To their surprise the captain and quartermaster were part of a cargo company in charge of running trade goods along the main ports. For some reason it made San and Wooyoung suspicious. The mysterious men looked too well dressed to be simple merchants, however neither of them had asked too many questions.

San stared out into the horizon of endless waves. The sunset reflecting beautifully on them. Never having left their home port, this was the farthest the brothers had ever travelled and it felt exhilarating. The boxes in his hands momentarily became weightless as San took in his surroundings. He picked up his pace over to the storage cabin and sat his boxes down in their appropriate places. He turned to leave when suddenly he felt a pair of eyes come from the dimly lit corner of the room.

“Hello?” San called out nervously, maybe it was his imagination?

A loud thunk sounded and San let out a shriek. The next thing he knew there was a fluffy brown mess of fur knocking the wind out of him. The large animal proceeded to lick his face and neck as San struggled to push it away.

“A dog! Wow, I almost shit myself,” San laughed to himself and he gently pushed the dog off his chest and stood back up. The scruffy dog stared up at him wagging his tail expectantly.

“Who are you talking to in here?” A large shadow approached the doorway and his concerned face popped into the doorway before his looming frame stepped in.

“Mr. Yunho! Ah it seems we got ourselves a stowaway.” San replied.

“A stowaway? Wow look at him, come here boy!” He flashed a smile that made San question whether this soft expressioned man was the same mysterious navigator he had come to know.

Yunho was dressed in well fitted black slacks and loose white button up cotton shirt with a well adorned brown and golden belt. His hands and fingers were well adorned with rings and bracelets that shone even in the dim lighting of the storage cabin. His brown eyes contrasted with the eyeliner he had applied underneath his eyes. He clearly stood out among the crewmen who mostly wore worn down, sun bleached clothing with minimal makeup and jewelry. The only exceptions being the Captain and Hongjoong. San had heard rumors that Yunho was originally from a wealthy family and had been formally educated before being sent off to learn maritime trade.

“What should we do?” San asked before kneeling down to pet the dog.

“I guess probably lead him back off the ship, not sure the captain or Hong will be alright with us keeping a pet. Who knows if it’ll do well once we’re off at sea...? I had a shipmate’s dog who fell overboard once and drowned.” Yunho furrowed his brow.

“What shame… I love dogs... the stray me and Woo used to take care of died of old age and I think I missed having a dog around.” San sighed as he rose to his feet, “Come here boy let’s get you back to the dock, I’m not sure how you snuck in here without anyone noticing.”

San led the dog back onto the deck and found Wooyoung discussing the food stocks and kitchenware with Hongjoong. Both of them stopped their conversation and turned to face San and the dog. Wooyoung looked over to the quartermaster’s annoyed expression and quickly excused himself.

“Wow good luck with that.” He whispered in his brother’s ear as he quickly walked past him en route to his kitchen.

“What is that?” Hongjoong says with a scowl, “Who said you could bring a dog on board?”

“It’s not what it looks like…” San says in exasperation, Hongjoong was always so curt and to point. _Why won’t he give me a chance to explain myself? Especially before jumping to conclusions._

“Hey Hongjoong! We found it in the supply room, calm it down a bit.” Yunho piped in from the doorway he had followed San out of. He bent down and called the dog to him and started petting its head before turning his eyes towards Hongjoong, “If it’s alright with you and Seonghwa, I think it would be nice to keep a dog on board. Might help us with the rats if we train him to hunt them down.”

San widened his eyes with surprise, he didn’t expect Mr. Yunho to be the one to ask, especially after convincing him to lead the dog off the boat. Yunho caught San’s surprised expression and winked in his direction. Deep in thought Hongjoong didn’t catch the exchange between the two, and after visibly mulling it over he looked up at San.

“Cabin boy, Sang...woo…?” Hongjoong’s gaze wavered a bit, he knew he got his name was wrong but couldn’t think of what it could be.

“No I’m San, my brother is Wooyoung…” San looked down at his feet, he didn’t want to look at his captain’s second in command with an attitude painted on his expression. Why was it so hard to learn their names, he was pretty sure everyone else had them down?

“I’m sorry, I’m so terrible with names, San then, do you want to take responsibility for the dog? If you can train it to kill the rodents on board, especially in Wooyoung’s kitchen, I’ll add a bonus onto your wages.” Hongjoong cleared his throat, “Seriously I’m sorry San, I’ll be better about remembering you and your brother’s names.”

San softened up his expression at the second apology. The quartermaster wasn’t a bad guy, he just did dumb stuff like that from time to time. In every other way he was the most reliable and well-mannered man San had ever met.

“It’s alright, I know you have the most to keep up with on our ship. I promise to take responsibility for the dog sir! I’ll head over to Woo and get started on training it to hunt.” He exclaimed, excitement starting to take over his previous annoyance. He broke out into a contagious smile called his new pet towards him and led him off the deck into the cabins, excited to get started with his training. As he passed Yunho in the doorway he glanced up and whispered his thanks.

“No problem kiddo.” He whispered back, turning his attention to Hongjoong after San had disappeared down the hall, “Well! I’m glad that’s settled. We got our supplies tucked away, what do you want us to do now?” Yunho smirked from the doorway where he had leaned against the doorframe crossing his arms in a smug manner.

Hongjoong looked over at the tall handsome man bashfully, he didn’t want to admit it but he definitely had a soft spot in his heart for him. _After everything we’ve been through, I just can’t say no to him_ … Hongjoong snapped his head up to glare at Yunho. Did he expect him to cave in and let them keep the dog if he was the one asking? Hongjoong shook his head to clear his thoughts.

“Have you seen Seonghwa? He told me he needed to head into town this morning but he didn’t tell me where that was to… I know he tends to confide in you when it’s concerning something I would get worried over…” Hongjoong pouted knowing the truth in his words. The captain trusted him with anything most of the time, but it was bothering him that he hadn’t seen him back all day. The sun had just dipped in over the horizon and the darkness began to creep up around them causing Hongjoong’s worries to grow.

Yunho uncrossed his arms and walked towards Hongjoong.

“Hmm.. Seonghwa also told me he needed to head into town. Something about following a lead? But that’s all I know…” He playfully leaned his right elbow on top of Hongjoong’s head. How someone could be so small but authoritative was beyond him. He loved to mess with him at times like this.

Hongjoong placed his hand on his chin as he fell back into deep thought, not even realizing Yunho had placed his elbow on his head. _He said he was following a lead? That’s more than what he told me… but what kind of lead? Is this about what I think it is?_

“Hello?... Hongjoong? What’s wrong? I’m sure Seonghwa will be back soon. What’s with the serious face?” Yunho moved the arm he had placed on Hongjoong’s head and cupped his face with both hands. His cold rings startling Hongjoong. “I like what you did with your eyeshadow today. The light color around your eyes makes you look good.”

Hongjoong felt his face burn underneath Yunho’s large hands. He broke away from his hands and turns away to hide his embarrassed face before speaking.

“Thanks… it’s just to make me look more refined, I feel as if some of the crew members take me more seriously when they see someone who fixes himself up in the morning.” He pouts and brings himself over to whisper in Yunho’s ear. His blush returning to his cheeks when he realizes how far up on his toes he needs to be in order to do so. Yunho smiles slightly when he realizes it as well and leans down slightly.

“Have you thought about what Seonghwa and I discussed with you? If my hunch is right… I think Seonghwa is out trying to recruit people who can help us.” Yunho turns his head to face the serious look on Hongjoong’s face.

“Listen, without you and the cap I would still be the rich spoiled brat I once was. My parents thought sending me off would be good for me to build some character. If it wasn’t for you especially, I wouldn’t have had the nerve to run away for good. I’ve thought about you guys’ plans and my answer stays the same, I’m in it for long run as long as you are Hong.” Yunho ended his statement with a wink. He paused before grabbing one Hongjoong’s hands and bringing it up to his face to give it a kiss.

Hongjoong realizes his intentions and snatches it away before Yunho gets the chance. “Ugh I told you to _think_ about it at least Yunho, I don’t want to drag you along on something you wouldn’t want to be a part of.” Hongjoong sighed with his face burning red.

Footsteps approach them on the deck and the pair turn to see 3 figures approach them.

“Yunho! Hongjoong! Great timing, I have to introduce you to these fine young men I found in town.” Seonghwa’s chipper voice echoed across the deck.

***

**Author's Note:**

> Hi there! This is your girl's first fic ever, please treat me nicely. 
> 
> Follow me on twitter! @ateezsnoona
> 
> Happy Readings!


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